A Beautiful Break...

Anyone who lives in or around the Sonoran Desert knows it's rugged, hot and at times, unforgiving.  There are months of intense, high temperatures and we wait for it to break.  Toward the end of the summer is the monsoon season and then if you're lucky, there will be occasional rain showers.

The other morning it was cloudy, dark and sprinkles were in the air.  Out here, this is the stuff dreams are made of and I decided it was time to take a beautiful break.  It's true that if you don't venture out into nature at times like this, it's a missed opportunity.  I went on a little hike and enjoyed feeling cooler, the sun was hidden behind layers of clouds and the rain and moisture made the desert scents come alive.  I wished I could have bottled up the scent of the creosote leaves and brought it home with me.

Instead, I took some photos to enjoy.  You can look closely and see the rain drops all over the agave which makes it look like cool shark skin.  I also noticed what looks like some sort of images burned onto the stems of the plant that look like silhouettes from the upper stems.  It's possible that as the sun appears to change position during the day, it blazes in shadow marks of the jagged edges from one to another.  A simple example of the rugged beauty in this desert southwest!

1/2 Ounce Silver Ingot and Paracord Bracelet

Here is one of my finished .999 fine silver ingots I milled with oak leaves.  I used the silver piece and black 550 paracord to make this bracelet.  It was quite a process to figure out the levels of milling and getting the impressions on the silver.  I really like the look of the metal after adding the patina and then gently removing some of it.

1/4 Ounce .999 Fine Silver Ingot Bracelet with Black Micro-Paracord

I've been working on some bracelets where I use an actual .999 fine silver ingot as the center piece.  I have milled the ingots, impressed oak and other leaves on them, drilled, hammer formed, added patina and sanded.  If you look closely at the finished piece, you can still see the markings from the mint which is what I wanted.  I made a black micro paracord bracelet with this piece.

I used hard boiled egg to do the first layer of patina and it was a cool peacock color.  You can see where I sanded some of it off in one of the photos.  I really wanted the recessed areas to look black, so I then used liver of sulfer.

Here are some photos of the finished bracelet and the process along the way.  Thanks for looking!

Bikini Top in 550 Paracord

I had the idea to make one of these for a long time...  It was on the old mental list of things to do and one day, not too long ago, I made a paracord bikini top.  I had never seen one before and I thought it would be such a conversation piece at some shows.  We had it out, looked at it, passed it around and giggled!

I did not use a pattern for this, but worked through it myself.  I can tell you that there is over 115' of cord in the project.  I made the one triangle and then the other.  There is one piece of cord woven through the bottom to tie it and I anchored long pieces folded in half for the top straps.  Those were the only two pieces that I removed the inner strands from.  This top is heavy due to the amount of cord and it's also thick.  Seriously armour without the scale male!

So, before someone else rolls one of these babies out... I will claim it as my wild creation!  That is until someone else figures out how to make one!  Good luck out there and hope you have a LOT of cord!!!

Wire Wrapped Herkimer Diamond and Tiger Eye Ring Pendants

I say ring pendants because these can be worn as rings or hung from a cord and worn like a necklace.  The stones are rather large and I found the ring design is a great way to show them off a couple of different ways.

Herkimer diamonds are actual quartz crystals mined near Herkimer, New York.  In many specimens you will notice a point at each end which is also referred to as double terminated.  Herkimer diamonds are found clear, cloudy, smokey and may have impurities that look like dark spots or inclusions.  I have some stones where you can see crystal formations and little chips, rainbow prisms inside and sometimes crystals right on top of another.  I can't speak for everyone, but I'm a bit of a rock and mineral hound and love interesting things nature produces.  

The other ring pendants were made with some large tiger eye beads I had.  I have always loved the colors of tiger eye.  It's nice to know you can make rings and not have to use a blow torch and create a bezel and because the stones are drilled, you can do so many things with them.  Fun!

After the Storm...

Yes, I can see the beauty after the storm!

Kyanite, Pearl and Labradorite Pendant In Sterling

I made this sample pendant last night in sterling silver with sterling beads, various stones and one silver fresh water pearl.  I completely hand made this pendant of sterling silver wire and if you look closely, you will see where I added some ball chain as well.

I call this a sample because this is the first one I've made with a stone in the middle vs. a silver pendant.

I used kyanite which is a mineral and it's a bit softer just like the briolette at the center.  When I mention stone softness, I'm referring to the Mohs Scale which is a mineral hardness rating system. Kyanite rates about 5.5 from what I've read and makes this stone better used in pendants or earrings.